Why you should keep a journal?

Many travellers say this is the single best thing they brought on their trip. You could also buy it when you arrive: hand-pressed paper from France, India or elsewhere gets you off to a good start. If you’ve kept a journal before, you’ll be bringing one anyway. If not, this is the perfect time to start. It’s not easy to process or even remember all the places and people and stories, and simply putting your thoughts down on paper can have a soothing, therapeutic effect. It can be a friend when you’re alone or provide structure for your day. If you have some artistic skill, spend a little more and get paper that will soak up your watercolours or hold ink better.

For those who are prepared to share all their innermost thoughts with the world, perhaps a travel blog, Twitter or Facebook would work well.

Thinking of setting up a travel blog? Here are your best options

The following three template-based blogging tools are among the most popular and easy to use and will let you customize the site and add the widgets you want (maps, calendars etc). And they’re free.

Wordpress ( wordpress.org). Most plug-ins, huge range of templates.
Blogger ( blogger.com). Best for multiple bloggers, easiest to get started.
Tumblr ( tumblr.com). Best for images and simplicity; has most artistic feel.

If you want to use a special travel-blog setup, there are a few popular (and free) online travel diary sites that let you post diary entries, photos and videos as you go. Plus they’ll help you list out your itinerary and plot your trip on a map. They’re all quite same-same-but-different – look around and see which seems to gel best with your taste. TravelPod ( web_icon travelpod.com) is one of the originals, now owned by TripAdvisor. You can upload via your mobile and even turn your trip into a printed book. Ads inserted into your content, which some may not appreciate, can be removed for an annual subscription.

Have a look around. There is plenty of competition here, with new sites popping up you may like better.

The easiest way to take good travel photographs

Bringing along a camera is pretty obvious. Which kind – and how to use it – isn’t. The temptation for many is to get a “good camera” – that is, one above their level of expertise. Or to not bring one because they like the one on the mobile phone… also a mistake (many stop taking pictures when the battery gets low or memory fills up). If you’re a professional or exceptional amateur, bring what you need. Just be aware of the security risk of carrying valuable gear. Remove the brand names from the bags, try to select a case that doesn’t look like a camera case, and minimize your lenses and accessories.

If you’re not a pro, go for a relatively inexpensive digital pocket camera. Keep size in mind. The smaller it is, the easier it may be to get to it quickly or even keep in your hand a while, and that’s going to help you catch those gone-in-a-heartbeat moments. Besides, if it’s easy to carry and access, you’ll probably use it more often and – here’s one of the oldest photography tricks in the book – the more photos you take, the better your chances of getting something amazing.

If you’re buying a new camera, consider skipping on the zoom. On pocket cameras, it jacks up the price, runs down the battery, brings down the quality and is not very powerful. If you take one to three steps forward, you’ll get the same effect for free. Plus, if the moving zoom parts get so much as a grain of sand in them, kiss the camera goodbye for a month or two while it gets sent back to the manufacturer.

If you’re using your phone as a back-up camera, you might consider getting a lens attachment set for it. There are now several, like the “Dot iPhone Panorama Lens” or iPhone Telephoto Lens. web_icon photojojo.com sells speciality photo accessories for iPhone. Limited memory means backing up pictures can pose a few problems, but there are some ways to deal with this.

WHEN NOT TO TAKE PHOTOS

There’s a reason it’s called taking a picture: rarely is permission requested. It may be your camera, but it’s their image or holy site and either of those trumps whatever you’ve got in your hand, even if you’re holding a Nikon with a Swiss lens. The path to pictorial enlightenment involves respecting local bans on photography and asking all subjects for the right to snap their photo. Everything else – including the zoom-lens sniper approach – is nicking pictures. That sounds a bit dramatic, but for many, photography is their only interaction with locals, and it’s a relationship largely based on selfishness and insensitivity (the author has been guilty of this as well at times). For some cultures, our swinging lenses can feel as intrusive as if someone walked up and took your picture while you were lying on the beach half-naked or stuffing your face at a restaurant. To get those great portraits you see on guidebook covers and in magazines, simply ask permission. Or go one better and try to initiate conversation. Make a few friends or even a small connection and it will add another dimension to the picture. Then, if you can, get an address and send them a copy. Giving photos has a much nicer ring than taking them.

Five essential photography tips for pocket-camera/smartphone users

1. Don’t worry so much about the postcard shots. Just buy the postcard. Those photographers used the best equipment, found the best vantage point and waited until the lighting was perfect. Nothing will make friends and family back home fall asleep quicker than endless landscape shots.

2. Photograph things that show your life on the road. It takes some effort to remember to photograph them (doorways, weird meals, freaky buses, scary toilets, charismatic taxi drivers and so on). Also, resist the urge to photograph your travel companions posing. Catch them off guard and you’ll get a more honest, interesting photo.

3. With scenery, and often even with people, try to compose the photo so there’s something very close, something mid-range and something in the distance. If you want to photograph someone standing in front of a waterfall, for example, try positioning yourself just behind a texture-rich tree branch and allow it to appear in a third of the picture.

4. Think of your picture as a grid of three by three, like a game of noughts and crosses. It often works well to position the centre of your subject on one of those four crossings, instead of just placing the subject in centre. When the subject is moving, you want to position it on the side so it appears to be moving towards the centre of the photo, not off the frame.

5. Shoot when cloudy or try using a flash in daylight. Despite the fact that things seem brighter, midday sunlight actually flattens images and provides unappealing photos. For people, animals and objects, you want overcast skies or indirect light. A cloudy day is the perfect time to get great pictures. If you must shoot people in the middle of a sunny day, use your flash to eliminate unattractive shadows or (this may sound counterintuitive) have your subjects step into a shaded area. You can get some great silhouette shots by having the sun behind your subject, but unless you’re intentionally trying to do this for visual effect, you’ll do well not to shoot into a light source.

CAPTURING THE MOMENT

In college I spent a year abroad in Southeast Asia. I didn’t have a camera. At the time I believed that you shouldn’t travel with a camera because you’d bring back pictures instead of experiences. I’m sad to say I probably pulled the idea from some Richard Bach novel. Now I carry a camera when I feel I’ve got the space, but I still try to avoid that stereotypical tourist thing: spending so much time choreographing pictures that you miss out on the place.

During that year without a camera I discovered I had a good memory for visual things. I could close my eyes and give myself a slide show. I recorded the stories that went with those slides in my journal: the Chinese guy in Laos who fed me fried bugs for dinner and wanted me to marry his daughter; the Mekong whisky shared with three Danes on the train ride from Laos to Bangkok; the experience of watching captive orang-utans repatriated to the wild in Sumatra. I still fill my journals with such encounters. A recent favourite is the Turkish submarine commander who showed me Gallipoli, the battleground where his grandfather died. Keeping a journal also gives you something to do when you’re travelling solo. Eating alone can be especially depressing. But with a journal you feel like you’re reporting, even conspiring. And it lets you focus on the little things in front of you. That’s when I noticed that the cats in Thailand had broken tails. I’ve since heard they’re broken intentionally – otherwise the felines would be too perfect to strive for Nirvana. I like a medium-sized journal with non-lined paper in case I want to doodle. I’m not particularly gifted artistically, but I want to draw if I’m in the mood. That’s part of the beauty of a journal: it’s more personal, more private. With pictures you often take them for other people. The journal is my trip, just for me.

John Hoult, radio producer

Recording sound

If the sounds of a place conjure stronger memories for you than photos, or if you’d prefer to dictate your journal, you can easily save them on your smartphone or bring along a small digital recorder (there are microphone attachments for iPhone that will help you collect ambient sounds better and others that will improve the sound of interviews). This can be a nice addition to any blog post and help encourage your reader to close their eyes and try to imagine the scene.

Some basic tips for shooting video

Like photography, video has spawned stacks of books on method and technique. If you’re going to shoot, here are two simple tips. The first is to hold the camera very steady, even if it’s equipped with an electronic stabilizer. That may mean leaning against a tree or lamppost. If you’re serious about getting good footage, however, bring a tripod. Nothing induces headaches like watching shaky footage. There are some new, compact, handheld, battery-operated products for phones and GoPros that utilize a “three-axis gimbal” to keep things steady while you move around. They cost about £130–230/$200–$350. Search for “3-axis gimbal” and the make of your phone or camera online and buy one with strong reviews.

The second tip is to resist letting the camera follow your natural head or eye movement all the time. For example, allow someone to walk across the field of vision – entering on one side and disappearing on the other. This will make editing much easier once you return home.

Though the quality won’t be great and it’ll eat up memory even more than photos, filming videos on your phone is quick, simple and requires no specialist equipment. Make sure you shoot in landscape rather than portrait orientation, though, as that works better on most screens.

Drawing and painting

Watercolours, colour pencils and sketching charcoal are relatively cheap and extremely easy to transport. Even if you don’t have much artistic skill, or much that you’re aware of, this is an ideal time to give it a shot. It’s a nice alternative to reading or writing when you’re stuck somewhere for a long time. Which, invariably, you will be at some point. Pick up a “how-to” paint/draw book and learn as you go.

What to do with souvenirs you buy

Send them home! Few travellers need any help selecting souvenirs, but most seem to need some help carrying them. No matter how small, lightweight and space-saving the items may seem individually, the best thing you can do – unless you’re at the tail end of your trip – is have a big round of shopping when you get to a market you like, then ship everything home the same day. Your glass turtle earrings, Dutch windmill decanter and fake Ray-Bans from Vietnam will have a much better chance of getting broken, stolen or lost under your care than that of a postal service. Naturally, there are several levels of security available (as well as private couriers) at a range of prices. Consider the reliability of the postal service (are you in Denmark or India?), the weight of the package and the value of what you’re sending, before you ship. There’s no magic formula, but it’s not uncommon to pay more for postage than for the actual item enclosed. Keep that in mind when you’re about to buy that set of traditional fire-walking rocks in Fiji.

MEMENTOS OF YOUR TRIP

Most of the best are free and easy to carry. You might collect small, flat items that catch your eye and evoke a memory: concert and train tickets, a beer label, fortune-cookie prediction, even a sample of the abrasive toilet paper that once gave you some trouble. Scan them or cram them into your journal for safe transport.

Watch out for illegal souvenirs

Another thing to consider is the legality of exporting antiques. Just because a vendor in a market is willing to part with it doesn’t mean you’re allowed to bring it out of the country, so the authentic fifteenth-century porcelain spittoon you bargained for may not be getting off the plane with you when you land back home. Nor is it likely to arrive in the mail. If it looks old and valuable, consult your guidebook. You may need to get a certificate of authenticity from a museum. Shopping caution also applies to plants, seeds and items made from wild animals, which may be removed by customs officials. You won’t be reimbursed for any of this, but you may get fined.

CARRYING YOUR GEAR

The biggest challenge with carrying camera equipment in any situation is to be constantly aware without being suspicious. The gear is valuable, but you have to remember that it’s just gear and it’s replaceable. For example, I’m often in remote places and find myself in the middle of a group of kids who want to see my camera – look through the lens, take a few pictures. Some photographers freak about that. My feeling is that some kid has never seen a camera, really wants to, and I’m not going to deprive them of that. I’ll keep a hand on the strap, but let them play with it.

That doesn’t mean I make it easy for professional thieves whose full-time job is trying to figure out what people have and how to get it. First, I try to be inconspicuous. Camera bags attract too much attention. I currently use a regular bike-messenger bag. I wear dark clothes and my camera is dark, so that works as camouflage while it’s half tucked under my arm. Then I think about the picture before I take it. I don’t compose my shots through the viewfinder, so I’m not keeping my camera visible for long.

This doesn’t always work though. I was in the Central African Republic going through a crowded market. I was carrying my gear in this utility belt around my waist. I call it my batman belt. It’s so close to the body, I can feel if anyone touches it, and it’s not easy to cut through or open. Plus my shirt flops over it so it’s not easy to see. Anyway, I thought I felt something. So I turned around and there was this guy holding my light meter. The reporter with me said that it looked like there was some kind of silent agreement between us. I just fixed his gaze. Then calmly removed the light meter from his hand.

Chris Anderson, Photojournalist, New York Times Magazine, Magnum Photos

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Documenting your trip